When a plague hits his village, the shaman Cian
travels to dwarves and centaurs for a cure. He allies with Thanyan, a lovely male elf, falling in
love. Can they save the village and their own lives?
Blurb
When a plague ravages his village, the shaman Cian sails to the land of the dwarves for a
cure. During the voyage, he meets and allies with Thanyan, a beautiful male elf who is a
bard. Upon reaching the dwarven cleric whom Cian has been tasked with consulting, they
uncover a dangerous secret: the plague resulted from blood magic. To undo this forbidden
magic, they must travel to the island nation of the centaurs and visit The Amphitheater of
Souls, the ancient temple where the blood magic was cast.
Cian and Thanyan hire a female dwarven warrior, Loquin, as a bodyguard for protection
against the instigator of the plague. However, they still find themselves stalked, assaulted
with magic, and tangled in secrets. On the voyage to the island, a sea serpent attacks, nearly
destroying their ship, and when they arrive at the island, the spellcaster launches further
attempts to kill them so they can’t lift the blood curse causing the plague. With the help of
centaur priestesses, the group fights to untangle a dark affair that is revealed to span
decades.
As Cian and Thanyan become embroiled in this dangerous mission to capture the rogue
spellcaster, they grow to love each other. But with their lives at risk, can they save the village
and live out their lives together in love?
Excerpt
In the morning, Cian and Thanyan ate a hearty dwarven breakfast and walked back to
the Five Abbeys. Rokemak awaited them. He opened the door as soon as Cian knocked.
Cian bowed. “Good morning, Esteemed Cleric Rokemak.”
“Yes, a good morning indeed. Do come in.” Rokemak swerved through the stakes of
books and the three cats, each of which tried to trip him as he walked.
Cian and Thanyan followed Rokemak inside.
“Does this mean you’ve discovered something more about our quest?” Thanyan
asked.
“I have information, yes.” Rokemak picked up two letters from his desk, both with a wax
seal. He handed them to Cian. “The first letter is to Etena, Priestess of the Western Temple
of Equatusa. The Western Temple is where you’ll need to go to access the Amphitheater of
Souls. I’ve met and spoken with her before. She’s even-tempered—for a centaur,
anyway—and will hear you out.”
Cian glanced at the first letter. “Will the city guards permit us to enter if I show them this
letter?” The outside was addressed to Etena from Rokemak.
Rokemak snorted. “They will test your strength first. Typically, centaurs are like the
stereotypical night elves: They hate tourists, and they hate weaklings.”
“Great. So I’ll have to practice fighting with Loquin, or I’m doomed.” Cian wished now
he’d kept up his skills after his elder sister had trained him. He held up his arms, which were
slender, not muscular. “I’m a druid and an apprentice shaman. I have no interest in
fighting.”
“Centaurs prefer physical strength,” Rokemak said, “but they accept there is more than
one kind of power.”
“Druidic power?” Cian raised an eyebrow. “The skills of a shaman?”
“Think about what you can do that others cannot,” Rokemak said.
“I don’t know of another person besides my gran and Shaman Shaeya who has visions,”
Thanyan said. “That is a rare gift from the deities. I don’t suppose you can have visions
deliberately?”
Cian cringed and let his gaze hover on Rokemak’s longhaired white cat napping in the
sunlight pouring through a window. “Shaeya and Adeen have both mastered inducing visions
at will, but I have not. I am able to scry for information using water or fire. If centaurs find
divination useful, it’s one of my top skills. That and healing spells.”
“Healing spells are useful everywhere,” Rokemak said. “In fact, among the night elves,
healers have the most respect afforded them of any magic user.”
Surprised by Rokemak’s even tone of voice when discussing night elves, Cian glanced
back at him. Humans usually hate and fear night elves. Apparently dwarves do
not.
Thanyan glowered at the mention of the night elves.
“Above all, centaurs prize honor.” Rokemak stooped to pet the zebra-coated cat swiping
his legs. “Don’t forget that.”
“Very well.” Cian knew little about centaurs, so he took the priest’s word at face
value.
“Above all else, dwarves are honorable, and Cian is a most honorable human,” Thanyan
said. “He is willing to sacrifice himself for his village. If anything, Cian could use slightly less
honor.” He slanted Cian a look. “However, if this impresses upon the centaurs the dire
importance of the quest, then all is well.”
Cian held up the second envelope. “And this letter?”
“That is to the high priestess Gordina.” Rokemak straightened. “You need to ask Etena to
take you to see Gordina. She’ll first bite your head off, but if you persist, she’ll agree to be
interviewed. From there, convince her to do the spell you need.”
“And do you know which spell we need?” Cian asked.
“Not precisely. Only that it must reverse the blood magic spell.” Rokemak’s brow
furrowed. “Only Gordina will know which one will work. She can deduce which spell was
cast, or, if you are lucky, she’ll have a record of the spell.”
Cian stowed both letters in his bag. “Thank you for the invaluable advice. You honor
Shaeya with your friendship, and I am deeply grateful.”
“Oh, none of that.” Rokemak flushed lightly. “This is my final piece of advice.
Equatusa is a goddess of the centaurs. Her statues are obvious because she’s portrayed as a
centaur with wings. Each time you see a statue of her, incline your head, bow, or otherwise
salute her. The centaurs will take it as a sign of respect to them and their culture. Now off to
the docks with you! The daily ship to Valcalla leaves soon.”
“I will pen you into my epic about our quest favorably,” Thanyan said with a
grin.
Offering a final bow, Cian allowed Rokemak to usher them away.
About the Author
I’m a quirky English professor with tattoos, piercings, and
an addiction to supernatural thriller, horror, fantasy, and science fiction. I’m proudly
neurodivergent, third gender, and a trauma survivor, all things often reflected in my novels. I
have degrees in both English and psychology, both of which inform my writing. In my free
time, I enjoy hiking, off-road biking, and pyrography.
